


Bring My Baby Home Tonight

by Imogen_LeFay



Category: Glee
Genre: Best laid plans vs reality, Christmas Fluff, M/M, Self-indulgent fluff, christmas surprise
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:46:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,246
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28322571
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Imogen_LeFay/pseuds/Imogen_LeFay
Summary: An ocean between his boyfriend and him at Christmas might be a problem for normal people – Sebastian sees it more as a challenge. That is until his perfectly planned Christmas surprise runs headfirst into reality.Self-indulgent Christmas fluff
Relationships: Blaine Anderson/Sebastian Smythe
Comments: 8
Kudos: 51





	Bring My Baby Home Tonight

**Author's Note:**

> So, I only had a few flare-ups of Christmas spirit this year. But somehow, this came out of it.   
> It's mostly self-indulgent fluff, and I probabl wouldn't have wriitten it if the last chapter I wrote didn't end on the note it did, and I'd rather close up the year with something more positive.  
> So hear you go, pure self-indulgence, and yes, that means Sebastian's sister shows up. 
> 
> Title is from "Hey Santa" by Carnie and Wendy Wilson
> 
> Merry Christmas to all my readers, and my best wishes for 2021!

All around him, Sebastian sees twinkling lights, white and red and green, some blue. It’s after dusk, but even now it doesn’t seem all too dark, with the stars above him, the bright decorations around him, and the snowflakes in the air. It’s picture perfect, really. All that’s missing are some carolers or something.

And Blaine.

Sebastian can’t help imagining his boyfriend, strolling through New York with that spark in his eyes, searching for the perfect decoration, tree, gifts… He has heard enough stories about Christmas in New York, the most magical time and place ever. He’s done his fair share of teasing Blaine about it, but when pushed he has to admit that he’s had his fun last year. It was all new back then, even having a boyfriend, but mixing Christmas traditions… it was fun. He’s even looked forward to a repeat this year, ever since the weather has turned colder at the beginning of fall.

Things have turned out a bit different than expected.

It’s not that Sebastian’s complaining. About half his journalism class would literally kill someone for the opportunity this internship in Paris is giving him. And he’s lucky enough that his sister agreed to let him stay in her apartment for the two months he’s staying here. But even after only four weeks, Sebastian realizes he’s underestimated just how hard this was going to be.

He comes home soon after. The living room looks… different. There are decorations in the windows, fairy lights draped over the different shelves and even the TV, as well as fir branches. The tree that was completely bare when he left for work is now covered in garlands, ornaments and electric candles, a bright star on top. He finds his older sister, Colette, sitting at the dining table, drawing some designs, while her boyfriend Manu is putting the last touches on the decorations. Clearly, he’s spent his free day productively, and he’s gone all out. There are even little glass snowflakes on the tree, and he can’t help thinking how much Blaine would love those.

“How was work?” Colette asks, looking up from her drawing.

“Pretty good,” Sebastian replies. “Um… I’ll call Blaine real quick, okay? I want to catch him before he leaves for the soup kitchen.”

Theater has been slow the last month, but Blaine hasn’t been complaining, just finishing a show and welcoming a bit of a break. Still, he can’t sit still for too long, so of course he found some charity to support, in this case helping out in a soup kitchen. Apparently, it’s exhausting, sobering, and utterly worth it.

“Give him my love,” Colette calls after him.

“Sure,” Sebastian replies.

His sister has met Blaine a total of three times, and adores him. The feelings is mutual, and Sebastian isn’t sure if that’s a good thing, not really looking forward to the day they’ll team up, but right now, he’s just glad at how well Blaine gets along with his family. He’s the first guy Sebastian has brought home, the only one he ever cared about introducing to anyone. Then again, it’s Blaine. Of course, they love him. Who wouldn’t?

He slips into the guest room, and as he sits down on the bed, the call connects.

“Hey you,” Blaine says, his voice bright and happy. It’s around noon in New York, and he clearly is still full of energy.

“You’re not on your way out yet, right?” Sebastian asks. “I wanted to call sooner, but work-“

“I get it,” Blaine says, his voice smooth as honey. “They’re really working you hard, hm?”

“Yeah, well, I’m told it’s worth it,” Sebastian says.

“It will be,” Blaine says. “One step further on your way to the Pulitzer.” He pauses, and there’s a shift like he’s sitting down somewhere. “I do miss you, but it’s okay. Just one time, right? Not like we won’t have more Christmases to come.”

He does that sometimes, slipping in vague mentions of the future, and every time he does, Sebastian feels warmer, just at the reassurance that this is something real, something long term. When they started dating, everyone told Blaine it was a mistake and wouldn’t go anywhere. Sometimes, Sebastian still feels like he has to fight against people’s preconceptions.

“And hey, at least you’re missing Christmas in New York for Paris,” Blaine continues, because that’s another thing – he never makes much of these moments, as if they’re just completely natural. “Rachel is dragged back to Ohio to meet Jesse’s parents, who have recently decided he’s their favorite kid again. Apparently, it switches every few months these days.”

“Isn’t he getting clout for being one of the youngest successful producers?”

“But he’s not a lead actor, and behind the scenes doesn’t count,” Blaine says. “Of course, his siblings screwed up even more than this, so… I don’t know, it’s a whole mess from what I gathered, but it seemed smarter not to get too deep into it.”

It’s then that Sebastian notices something else, something he should have realized immediately. Blaine had told him he was inviting friends over for Christmas, but looking back, Sebastian starts adding things up. Rachel and Jesse have other plans, Artie is doing some assistant work at a film shoot in Vancouver, and Tina is flying out to visit him. Sam is in Ohio with his family, and apparently, Mercedes is spending the holidays with him. And, what Blaine doesn’t know, Santana told him she and Brittany are going to Iceland for some reason. So, he wonders, who is even left for this friendly Christmas celebration? Hummel and that weird goth hippie he either just broke up with or started dating again?

“Oh, shoot… I’ve really gotta go, or I’ll be late for the soup kitchen,” Blaine says. “We’ll talk tomorrow, right?”

“On Christmas Eve? Obviously,” Sebastian replies. Under other circumstances, he would have insisted on talking about this, making sure Blaine had a solid plan and wouldn’t spend Christmas alone.

But Sebastian knows that won’t be the case, so he lets it go for now.

The call ends, and Sebastian lies back, smiling as he looks at the ceiling. Tomorrow will be exhausting, but it will be worth it.

His suitcase is packed lightly, waiting under the bed. He booked his ticket a few weeks ago. His flight goes in the early afternoon, so by the time he lands and makes his way through public transport, he should arrive at the apartment just in time for Christmas Eve. He imagines the way Blaine’s face will light up, just his smile, how it will feel like to hold him again… it’s insane, of course, straight out of some rom com. But Blaine loves these movies, and damn it, he wants to be crazy for this man.

He takes out his phone again, scrolling through his mails to check his ticket. He hasn’t looked at it since he booked it, but he thinks he needs to be at the airport around noon. He can probably push Manu to drive him. Colette’s boyfriend is a bit uncomfortable around Sebastian as the gay brother, but it’s more lack of exposure than homophobia, and he tries to compensate it by bending over backwards to make Sebastian feel welcome. One of these days, Sebastian will stop exploiting that. If he’s very smooth, he’ll manage before his sister gives him crap about it.

That’s when he sees it.

The ticket was cancelled.

Sebastian stares at the screen, not understanding what’s going on. How has he not noticed this? But as he reads it, he feels like his heart drops. His father has drilled both him and Colette enough to always get a travel cancelation insurance, and apparently, _someone_ has used it to cancel the ticket, basically the last day it was possible.

He almost drops his phone as he gets up, all but storming back into the living room.

“Done already?” Colette asks, looking up from her drawings. “We’ve just been talking, how do you feel about take-out? Neither of us really feels like cooking, and there’s this new Thai place?”

“I had a ticket.”

She looks at him mildly confused, as if it takes her a moment to understand what he’s talking about, but then she laughs. “Oh, yeah, don’t worry, I took care of that for you.”

“What do you mean, took care of it?”

She shakes her head, like he’s being ridiculous. “I can’t believe you forgot to cancel that. Dad told us ages ago it wouldn’t work out to visit him, and you still didn’t cancel your ticket home?”

It takes him a moment to understand what she means. Originally, the plan had been for the both of them to visit his father, but he and Evelyn decided to go on a cruise instead. Of course, Sebastian didn’t book a ticket for that.

“You’re lucky you left your browser open,” Colette continues. “I happened to see it, basically the last day your insurance would allow a cancellation at no cost. I thought I told you about it? Oh, no, wait, I remember. Work was crazy that day, I must have forgotten about it.”

“I wanted to go to New York,” Sebastian barks, glaring at her.

She frowns. “New York?” she asks. “What on earth would you want in New York?” After another moment, she answers her own question. “Were you going to surprise Blaine for Christmas?”

“Obviously,” Sebastian says. “How the hell am I supposed to get a ticket now?”

“Wait, seriously?” She stares at him as if he’s lost his mind. “That was your plan? You show up in New York, last minute, without any warning? And then what? You take a cab to his place? You can’t really afford a ticket in the first place, but that as well? And what if Blaine has any other plans? Are you sure he’s even in New York? Also… when were you going to tell me? That is so inconsiderate!”

It’s not inconsiderate, it’s romantic, and he thinks his sister should give him some credit for that, but of course she’s too disgustingly practical for that. And of course, Sebastian feels like he has to defend himself.

“I was going to tell you, and it’s not like me being here is such a huge logistic effort,” he says.

“Nobody said anything about effort, it’s basic consideration and manners, Sebastian,” she bites back.

There’s just a bit too much fire in it, and Sebastian realizes what she’s doing. She’s turning it around, throwing up defenses so he forgets to focus on what actually started this. At times like these, he can feel his father’s regret that she never considered law school.

“Hey, here’s an idea, let’s get back to how you were snooping. You had no right to get into my mails, or cancel the damn flight.”

“Look, I’m sorry if I ruined your grand gesture, but could you please be an adult about this?” Colette asks. “This is real life, not a movie. You can’t just show up at someone’s place and hope they have nothing else planned. The idea is sweet, but the implementation really could have used some more work.”

She’s not going to apologize, and this is so much like their childhood that he wants to tears his hair out. But that won’t get him over the Atlantic, and yelling at his sister will only make him feel good for so long, especially with the way Manu is eying them already.

Instead, he turns back, and slams the door for good measure. He pulls out his laptop immediately, searching for anyway to get another ticket. It’s hopeless, and even if he finds something, he has a feeling he probably won’t be able to afford it. Eventually, he has to give up. There is actually no way for him to get to New York before Christmas is over.

So much for his last minute surprise. So fine, maybe his plan wasn’t perfect. Still, that doesn’t give his sister any right to ruin this. He thinks of Blaine, probably all alone in New York, and he wants to punch something. It’s not even about his plans, he just wants Blaine to be with someone. Well, him, preferably, but he deserves better than be alone just because Sebastian’s plan was a little sloppy.

It’s the damn romance that ruins everything. He used to pull off plans so well. Then again, when he thinks of how well his “steal the New Directions Regionals gimmick” went, maybe he just shouldn’t plan things, save himself and everyone else the headache.

He doesn’t talk to his sister or Manu for the rest of the evening, apart from very short communication about dinner. The next morning, Christmas Eve, he keeps to himself, waiting until it’s an appropriate time to call Blaine. At some point, he hears Colette’s boyfriend leave, apparently on some last-minute errand she’s sending him on.

His anger has cooled down, mostly, and he knows he’ll go outside and talk to her sooner or later. He really doesn’t want things to be this tense all through Christmas. He does need an apology, but after a good night’s sleep, her temper has probably cooled the same way as his. But she can wait. Instead, he checks the time again, and finally, he thinks it’s late enough. Blaine will probably answer now.

It takes a while, but that’s probably to be expected. It’s not even eight in New York, and usually, Sebastian would feel bad to call this early. But he knows Blaine will be up, especially since it’s Christmas Eve, probably putting the last touch on decorations.

When he answers, it takes Sebastian a moment to even understand him. There’s way too much background noise for Blaine’s little apartment.

“Hey! Merry Christmas!” He sounds happy, but there’s just an edge of exhaustion in Blaine’s voice.

“Merry Christmas to you as well,” Sebastian says, feeling calmer already just by hearing his voice. “Where are you? Is that the subway?” There’s an echoing voice in the background, some sort of announcement that Sebastian can’t quite make out. “Are you at the station?”

“Actually, I’m at the airport,” Blaine replies, his voice light and easy. “Last minute flight to Los Angeles.”

Sebastian’s jaw drops, and he feels like an idiot. “You didn’t mention you were visiting your brother,” he says after a pause that took way too long.

“As I said, it was kind of last minute,” Blaine says. “I mean, I planned to do this whole Friendsmas thing, but it kept getting smaller and smaller, and eventually it would have just been Kurt and Elliott, and I have no idea what’s going on with them at the moment, and honestly, I’m staying out of that one. So, I talked to Cooper, and he got me a ticket. So yeah, I’ll have a sunny Christmas. With lots of pointing and dramatic turns. I’ll send you pictures.”

Sebastian still just sits there, staring at the wall, and he isn’t sure he’s ever felt this stupid. He thinks of his cancelled ticket, of his dumb, romantic plan, and how that would have played out. He really would have flown out to New York, only to end up in front of an empty apartment, with Blaine on the other side of the continent.

That’s why he doesn’t do romantic gestures. They’re idiotic, and this is what comes from them.

“Everything okay?” Blaine asks.

“You won’t get your gift on time,” Sebastian says. He hasn’t sent it, of course, expecting to give it in person. Well, now it doesn’t matter.

“I’ll love it at whatever time I open it, you know that,” Blaine says. “Your gift is actually on the way. It’s arrived in France, and your sister has someone pick it up as we speak.”

“You talked to my sister?” Sebastian asks.

“A while ago,” Blaine says. “Sebastian… are you sure everything is okay? You seem a bit off.”

He could just keep his mouth shut. There’s no reason to say anything. It was a dumb idea that didn’t go anywhere. Why drag it out?

Well, maybe because gestures mean something either way, the thought counting and all that.

“I wanted to come see you.”

“I wish I could see you, too.” Blaine’s answer is immediate, and Sebastian can picture the expression on his face – a smile with just aa hint of sadness. “Can’t wait for it actually.”

“No, I mean… I got a ticket. But there was a misunderstanding, and it got cancelled. I wanted to surprise you for Christmas.”

Now, there’s a pause. “You were coming to New York?” Blaine asks.

He’s panicking, obviously, just at the idea of Sebastian going to New York and him not being there.

“It was dumb,” he says quickly, “I just thought… I don’t know, I guess _someone_ made me watch too many rom coms, and then I thought it would be a good idea.”

“That’s the most romantic thing anyone ever planned for me,” Blaine says. He sounds like he’s clearly touched, but then he continues softer. “But listen… that’s in the movies. In reality, things don’t just fall into place that easily.”

“You sound like my sister now,” Sebastian says, and he hates that he now actually has to apologize to her. Of course, she’s right again. It’s probably her most annoying quality.

“There are worse things,” Blaine says. “Look… I know this isn’t exactly how you imagined things… but you’ll have Christmas with your family, and I’ll see you soon, and then it’ll be like we weren’t apart at all. And I’ll make sure to save some mistletoe, and we’ll catch up on everything we missed, okay?”

“Sounds good,” Sebastian says, although he can’t help feeling disappointed.

“Okay, I have to go now,” Blaine says. “I’ll talk to you as soon as I arrive, okay? I love you.”

“Love you too,” Sebastian replies, and it still surprises him sometimes how easy these words are. “I’ll talk to you soon.”

“So soon,” Blaine says.

When he ends the call, Sebastian closes his eyes, taking just a few moments to feel sorry for himself, before he gets to his feet. He’s been hiding in this room long enough.

He finds his sister in the kitchen, glaring at a dead bird.

“I’d say something about if looks could kill…,” Sebastian says.

Colette looks up, but then shows a rare, self-deprecating smile. “Well, that’s one thing that’s already taken care of. It’s my first goose. The recipe is pretty clear, but…”

“Do you need help?” Sebastian asks.

Her eyes light up, and that’s all the answer he needs. Without any long emotional talks, they get together, and after a short discussion about their grandmother’s recipe, they’re pretty sure they’ve figured it out and get to work. A while later, the goose is gutted, seasoned and filled, and ready to go into the oven.

“I think that was the worst of it,” Colette says, before looking to the recipe again. “Five hours… that’s going to be fun.”

“It’s better than Thanksgiving,” Sebastian says.

“True. Still, I need coffee now. What about you?”

“Got some Courvoisier?” Sebastian shoots back.

She rolls her eyes. “Do you really have to ask?”

A few minutes later, they sip their spiked coffee, taking a break, and it’s in that peaceful moment, that Sebastian finally speaks up.

“Blaine is going to LA. So… he wouldn’t even be there. Guess my idea was even dumber than you thought.”

She’s surprised, but then her expression softens. “I’m sorry,” she says. “It _was_ a sweet gesture, and honestly, I’m glad you have someone like this in your life… who makes you want to act like a fool.”

Sebastian raises an eyebrow at her. “Was that supposed to make me feel better?”

She sighs, rolling her eyes, but then gets more serious. “I’m sorry for going through your mails. You’re right, that was out of line. I should have talked to you.”

“Thank you,” Sebastian says. “And you’re right. About Blaine. Even the dumb things… for him, they’re kind of worth it.”

She looks at him in a way that’s way too sentimental, and he has to take another sip of his spiked coffee before he starts with it too.

“He says I have a gift on the way?” he says, trying to change the subject.

“Oh yeah,” Colette says, as if she only just remembered. “Yeah, Manu is picking it up right now.”

Sebastian pauses. “Is it big?”

Colette smirks. “How would I know? You’re getting to unpack it.”

He stops, because… that doesn’t really make sense? But before he can dig deeper, there’s a ring at the door.

“Why doesn’t your boyfriend have a key?” Sebastian asks.

“So you can go open the door,” his sister say. “Come on, shoo. It’s your gift, go and get it.”

He has no idea what to expect when he opens the door, or what Blaine could think of sending him. Probably something thoughtful, something he’ll smile about, something perfectly planned, because why can Blaine mange to be both romantic and organized at the same time?

It rings again, and Sebastian opens the door, and…

He stares, his jaw probably drops, and he can’t believe what he’s seeing. Because there, right in front of him, is Blaine – golden eyes, with just a hint of shadow under them, messy curls, and that smile…

“Merry Christmas,” Blaine says.

There are so many questions, things that barely made sense, but that whirlwind of emotions is nothing compared to the mere fact that Blaine is here, right here, in front of him, and Sebastian can’t do anything but pull him close. Blaine meets him in the middle, kissing him like he means it.

Only when they need air does Sebastian step back, and now, with Blaine in his arms, his questions flood back in. In the corner of his eye, he sees Manu walking in, carrying Blaine’s bag that he puts down. But it barely registers for even a moment, before all his attention is back on Blaine.

“What are you doing here?” he asks, unable to believe it.

“Surprising you,” Blaine replies. “Looks like it worked.”

“How… Why… But…”

“It’s okay, babe.” Blaine kisses him again, soft and short, and Sebastian kind of hates how he melts under it, except for how he absolutely doesn’t.

“You said it doesn’t work like that,” Sebastian says. “That it’s not like the movies.”

“It’s not,” Blaine says. “You need so much more planning. Also, accomplices.”

At this, Sebastian finally gets it. He turns around, where his sister is smiling at them.

“You knew!”

“Of course I knew,” she replies, rolling her eyes. “But his plan was better.”

He stares at her, but then he gives up. It’s happened, they’ve teamed up, now he can only hope to weather the storm. And right now, he’s more interested in the results of their scheme. Blaine’s arms sneak around his toro, and he pulls him closer, pressing a kiss into his curls.

Blaine is here.

Colette sends them to his room, claiming that Manu can help her with the dinner preparations, although they both know it means he’ll do most of the work, but hey, whatever works for them. Who is Sebastian to argue, when he can instead pull Blaine into the guest room?

Blaine should probably unpack, but neither of them pays any mind to his bag. They barely close the door behind them, when Sebastian is pulled down into another kiss, and now that they’re in private, there’s no holding back. Every moment of longing, every second of missing this gorgeous boy, flows into the way he holds him close, re-acquainting himself with those lips, that mouth, the feel of Blaine right here in his arms – warm, and solid, and _beautiful_.

“I can’t believe you’re here,” Sebastian says.

Blaine laughs, and even tired as he has to be, he’s the most gorgeous thing Sebastian has ever seen.

“Sorry for ruining your plans,” Blaine says.

“I felt like such an idiot, you know? When you told me you were in LA.”

“I’m just glad you didn’t hear enough of the announcement to realize they’re in French,” Blaine replies. “And you wouldn’t have been an idiot either way. You know that, right?”

“I would have been,” Sebastian says. “But honestly… I’m kind of okay with that.”

He wants to say more, how he doesn’t mind being a fool if it’s for Blaine, how he would deal with being an idiot and hopeless and more, just for this smile. But when he watches Blaine, the soft expression in his eyes, sparkling gold to warm honey, he realizes he doesn’t have to.

“I love you,” he says instead, because he can, and because somehow, with Blaine in front of him, the words hold not even a hint of unease. They’re as natural as exhaling.

“I love you too,” Blaine answers, whispers against his lips before catching them in another kiss.

After a moment, Sebastian pulls back, and he can’t help the dumb grin on his face as he looks at his boyfriend.

“I do remember you promising me mistletoe,” he says.

Blaine laughs. “It’s in my bag,” he says. “Do you want me to get it, or-?”

Sebastian shakes his head, smiling. “Save it for later,” he says. “I’d like to unpack my gift now.”

As Blaine surges into him, Sebastian realizes this might be his favorite Christmas yet.

**Author's Note:**

> on tumblr as imogenlefay


End file.
